Chandigarh, March 18: The Punjab Government on Wednesday issued a formal demand to neighboring Rajasthan for a staggering ₹1.44 lakh crore in outstanding water royalty. Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann announced that the state is seeking to recover these dues for water supplied for irrigation and drinking purposes through the Ferozepur feeder. The Chief Minister affirmed that while Rajasthan has continued to draw 18,000 cusecs of water, it has not paid a single paisa for this resource since 1960, despite a long-standing historical agreement.
While addressing reporters, Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann maintained that the demand is based on a tripartite agreement signed in the 1920s between the erstwhile Punjab, the state of Bikaner, and the British government. He declared that Rajasthan had originally agreed to pay for water on a per-acre basis and fulfilled these payments until 1960. However, the Chief Minister asserted that following the Indus Waters Treaty, the neighboring state stopped its payments while continuing to utilize Punjab’s river water.
The Chief Minister stated that the Punjab Government has already raised this issue with both the Union Government and the BJP-led administration in Rajasthan. He affirmed that it is surprising for states to demand more water through the Sutlej-Yamuna Link (SYL) Canal while remaining silent on such massive pending liabilities. Mann maintained that the state has written to the Rajasthan government to initiate a formal meeting to resolve the financial dispute.
Concluding his statement, Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann declared that Punjab will pursue the matter with complete firmness. He asserted that Rajasthan must either clear the historical dues or stop drawing water from Punjab’s resources. The Chief Minister maintained that the state remains committed to protecting its natural wealth and ensuring that its rightful financial claims are honored after decades of non-payment.
